Best Nintendo DS Games of 2011 (So Far)

When it comes to handheld gaming, the Nintendo DS is the system of choice, featuring a wide selection of games along with its unique touch screen interface. The recent release of the Nintendo 3DS also brought an interesting new spin on the handheld genre; however, it’s autostereoscopic display seems a bit premature, resulting in what many people agree is an undesirable experience. As a result, the best games, so far, this year do not focus on the 3DS.

Pokémon is one of those games that makes up part of Nintendo’s heart(gold) and soul(silver). Many people bought the DS solely so that they could play Pokémon, and Black & White lives up to the reputation. It’s the same Pokémon experience we should all be used to, but with an exciting graphics overhaul, and of course, all new Pokémon!

As a sequel to the much loved Okami, the DS exclusive Okamiden pairs the colorful brush-based game play with the DS’ touch screen interface. The two truly make a great match, but if you loved Okami, don’t be surprised if a bit of the story is repeated in Okamiden.

Radiant Historia is a time traveling, tactics-style, RPG offering game play experience reminiscent of Super Mario RPG and Legend of Mana, along with elements from the Chrono Series. It’s hands-down the best RPG on the DS this year.

The Dragon Quest (also known as Dragon Warrior) series has been around for a couple decades now. This version is actually a DS remake of the 1995 original (for Super Nintendo). If you’re looking for an epic RPG that will give you, literally, days worth of game play, Dragon Quest is where it’s at.

As much fun as de Blob 2 is for the Wii, it really finds its calling on the DS. As a light game with fairly uninvolved game play, it really is best suited for handhelds, and paired with the DS, it doesn’t disappoint.

If you would like to see reviews for all DS games, from this year and the past, head on over to our Nintendo DS Games Section. Be sure to sort by alaScore to see which rank the best.

This entry was posted
on Thursday, June 30th, 2011 at 1:13 pm and is filed under Buying guides, Gaming.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
Both comments and pings are currently closed.